103 year old woman votes

A Pleasure Island resident exercised her right to vote Monday. This isn't unusual - except for the fact that Lula McQuillan is 103.
While McQuillan has voted before, she can't remember the last time she cast a ballot. It is apparently been a while because she had to re-register. Once that was out of the way, she handled the electronic ballot with ease.
Her relatives tell us Lula thinks Barack Obama is a handsome guy; though she didn't come right out and tell us who got her vote.

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Thumbs-up to a wise voter. There are many valid reasons to vote for Barack Obama. I was so happy to see this article that I immediately shared a link with an international discussion board.
When I checked back on the board, I was saddened to see that negative comments had been linked to this article, to the disappointment of readers.
It is unfortunate that comments such as these are representing North Carolina.

Karl Marx would be so proud of Barack Obama and all of you sheep who are following him. It is so sad that this country is headed towards becoming socialistic society. The greatest country in the world and because of class envy and people wanting a hand out we're creeping closer to socialism every year. I don't think McCain is perfect by any means, but I think that he believes in the core values that made this country what it is. Hard work and wise choices = the american dream.

You closet racists ever think she voted for him not because he is 50% black but because McCain is 100% IDIOT ???
I am white, I am voting for Obama cause he is the best one out of the 2. I would rather have a well educated man with less experience than a twit with too much.
GO Lula!

How are you feeling about that 2001 radio interview that has surfaced, with your messiah talking about how unfortunate it was that the Supreme Court and civil rights movement never got around to the wealth redistribution issue?
You KNOW better, Zippy. Don't disengage your brain to be cool. If some girl is pressuring you to vote for Obama, you don't need her. She likely has an STD anyway.
Assert your independence and vote for McCain.

They still haven't found her body....
I point to Genesis, ladies:
Thy desire shall be unto thy husband AND HE SHALL RULE OVER THEE.
Accordingly, if your husbands tell you to vote for McCain, it is your duty as good wives to do exactly what they say.
Not only will it keep peace at home, you'll have a better chance of getting into heaven and you'll be saving the Republic from a four-year Socialist nightmare....
...and after all, if you can't come to ME for spiritual advice, who can you go to?

I did not vote for Jimmy Carter. I was only 17. I had my husband convinced to vote for Obama (for about an hour). Then he listens to talk radio all day and they swayed him back. Plus he works with a bunch of good ole boys that fill his head with republican goo. I spent every night researching and debunking his new found anti-Obama revelations and I still failed.
"It's all about the O"

Yes, voting for Obama because he is black shows how ignorant people are in America. (some people, that is). If I made headlines that I were voting for McCain because he is white, then the NAACP would be all over Wilmington, NC with sticks and stones!!! I am voting for Obama too. I think McCain has TOO MUCH experience. He already knows all the paths of evil, and all the loopholes he must go through to get his way. We need someone with not much experience, someone fresh with new ideas. And I think Obama will improve relations with other countries that McCain is too bitter to accomplish.

Parkway, parkway...how stupid art thou? Let me count the ways....
Only one needed actually.
"We need someone with not much experience.."
It is idiots like you that will bring down a plague upon our houses, namely Obuma. Remember to vote November 6!!

I would like to comment to the person that says we are all going to hell in a hand basket. The 103 year old woman is my grandmother and I am very proud of her. You don't even know her life. She grew up in a HOME with a white father and mixed mother. That is an accomplishment in itself considering the times she grow up in. She had to live a life with prejudice against a white man that would marry a woman of color and see both parents I am sure frowned upon as well as live through the depression when blacks were issued out less than the whites on particular days. My Mother, who was with her only made a statement but I assure you that my grandmother is very competent mentally for her age and able to make her own decisions. So, I salute my grandmoter, Lula McQuillan!!!

Yolanda - if you are still checking this page, please contact Harold G. Davis - hgdavis@bellsouth.net. This has to do with a relative of yours who was killed in action in Korea back in the 1950's. His name was Joseph Edward Murphy. Edith Honory was his maternal aunt. Family members are needed to contribute their DNA so that Mr. Murphy's remains can be identified and returned to family. I am helping Mr. Davis with searching on Ancestry. best wishes to you! Joanna

Voting for a person is a waste of a vote, when they think he is handsome, of course at 103, U can't see that well. She is not alone look at the young voting for about the same reason, and U have those they live off the Gov.

First, no vote is a waste. If you are not willing to vote in order to voice your opinion and take an active role in what decisions are made for you, then thats a waste. She should be commended for the fact that she is 103 and taking an active role no matter what drives her decision to vote for whom she chooses. Not so long ago she would not have been able to vote at all. The fact that she believes Obama is attractive is her personal opinion. And I would like to know how do you know this is her only reason for voting for him? I am sure after 103 years of life she has experienced enough to make a conscientious and responsible decision about whom she should vote for. I would also like to know who are those that you are referring to that are living off the government?

I do not personally support Obama. However, say anything you want about this 103 year old lady, she still has a LEGAL RIGHT TO VOTE, no matter what the motives may be. You cannot deny here that right. So once again, say what you want.

When I heard the beginning of this news story I thought "how wonderful, this lady is STILL exercising her right to vote". It was her daughter's comments that made me sick! It appears SHE convinced her mother to vote for "the handsome BLACK man". She even stated she had told her mother "he's a black man running for president, don't you want to go vote for him?" I would bet this dear old lady has no idea what Obama stands for. I would bet she couldn't tell you one single thing about him, except that he is black. This country is going to go to hell in a hand basket if we elect our president because of race and that is what it appears is going to happen. I would also bet that if that was a 103 yr. old white lady that was there and said she was voting for McCain because he was nice looking WHITE man it wouldn't make the news or if it did she would be called prejudice. I'm sure this 103 yr. old lady isn't the only one out there voting for Obama just because he is a black man-what a pathetic reason to vote for a presidential candidate. I know the news report said she didn't say who she was voting for, but her daughter said it for her. It frightens me to think what will likely happen to our country if he is elected by people who have no clue what is going on and really don't care-they just want to get the black man in the White House. That shouldn't be the reason to cast a vote. I don't care that he is black,white, green or purple-IF he was the man for the job. But, he has too many skeletons in his closet and absolutely NO experience (military or legistative) to run this country. I for one will cast my vote for the man that fought for this country and is proud to put his hand on the Bible, salute the flag of our country and wear it proudly on his lapel!

"I would also bet that if that was a 103 yr. old white lady that was there and said she was voting for McCain because he was nice looking WHITE man it wouldn't make the news or if it did she would be called prejudice."
The double standards in this country are appalling. So, why did she vote for Kerry or Bush in 2004? There wasn't a black man in the equation then. Blacks have voted for forty some presidents, not to mention senators, house of representatives, judges, etc. all of which were not of their race and never has there been a question as to why they voted for them. Now, a black man is running for president and all of a sudden black folks are prejudice because they support him. UNBELIEVABLE! It's really unfortunate that you refuse to give black folks (even if just a small percentage) the benefit of the doubt that they are voting for Obama because of the issues or because they are die hard Democrats or because they have studied and agreed with his tax plan. Perhaps they are voting for Obama because of his platform on the same issues for which they voted for forty other white presidents. What is unfortunate is your need to express your hypocritical views in response to a story relating to a 103 year old woman.

Mama, I agree with you, but, your comment:
"Blacks have voted for forty some presidents..." Didn't sound right to me, so I did a little research.
In 1870 the 15th Amendment was ratified, which provided specifically that the "right to vote shall not be denied or abridged on the basis of race, color or previous condition of servitude." But, in actuality it didn't work. States (especially southern states) made it very difficult for blacks to vote. They were threatended and laws were passed that made it very difficult for them to vote.
The "Voting Rights Act of 1965" limited the power of states to change their voting laws to restrict who could vote. 1965. That's only 43 years ago. There have been 7 presidents elected since then. Amazing to me. I think we all take so much for granted now, and don't bother to look back and see what our ancestors had to go through to get us where we are today.
Here's a little history lesson for all of us:
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/voting/intro/intro.php

You also have statistics on your side: Blacks have consistently voted Democratic for the past forty years. Obama being Black has nothing to do with the fact that you're voting the same party line again.
What I don't understand is WHY?
What have the Democrats done for Black America? Jeez, LBJ and his "Great Society" all but destroyed three generations of Black Americans. You and I both know that simply giving you money is not going to fuel a long-term increase in Black economic parity with White America.
The future of Black America is not going to be found in Washington. I'm not saying that the Republicans have earned your support, but the Democrats use you, take your vote for granted, and deliver NOTHING.
Re-inventing welfare under the guise of increased EIC will do nothing but bring about the malaise that infected poor Americans of all colors until Clinton did away with endless welfare. What it will also do is slow the economy further, and who suffers most when the eceonomy stalls?
Aren't you tired of waiting for the Democrats to keep all those broken promises?

While I'm excited that we finally agree on something, I regret that mention of black people is automatically associated with welfare. Yes, like many other ethnic groups there are a percentage of black folks that receive welfare; however, there is a greater percentage that work and pay taxes. A percentage that actually work to be productive members in society yet still face oppositions simply because they are black. It's unfortunate there is never any positive when referencing blacks there's always the implication and instant discussion of welfare.
Based on your response, the question isn't what have the Democrats done for blacks, the question is what has anyone or party done for blacks. Your point has some validity. Unfortunately, as a race of people all we can do is what we've done for years and that is struggle to survive. There are certain areas of wealth in this country that many enjoy today result for the sweat and tears of black folks, although now we're labeled lazy and always looking for a handout. Again, there is a percentage that live under a cycle they refuse to break, I cannot deny that; however, there are many that hold their own. As a race of people if our hope rest in a certain political party or leader, then we are yet again lost. My hopes are in a power far greater. The difference for me in this election is I don't see power..I see purpose.

...because they were the creation of a Democratically controlled white House and Congress, and are the source of so many problems in the Black community today.
I sincerely believe that the welfare state that existed from the mid-Sixties until the mid-Nineties (and in some ways, still exists today) was the most destructive plague sent upon poor Americans in the history of the nation. It affected people of all races, but was most destructive to those who were still fighting for basic civil rights, let alone full incorportaion into mainstream America. The KKK, in their most twisted fantasies, could not have come up with something so debilitating over the long term.
Everything the Democrats have done to "help" Black Americans has been done in a half-baked manner with no regard for the long-term tradeoffs. That's why Obama's plan to increase advanced EIC is nothing more than revisiting the Great Society mindset of "Stay home, we'll give you money, if you have a baby we'll give you more money, just please don't burn down our cities." The only thing missing from a complete return to the same nightmare as AFDC is the absence of a requirement that no healthy adult male be resident in the home! How are the poor going to get anywhere if we simply throw a small anount of money at them? Without an education, poor people who are given money blow that money. The many successful, prosperous Blacks in this nation are in that condition because their parents or grandparents refused to sit back and accept the handouts, years ago. They realized early on that "free money" was just as addictive as any drug being sold on the corner.
I learned a long time ago that a man's value is found in the strength of his word and character, not the color of his skin. That's why it pains me to see Blacks wedded to a political party that has consistently lured them with the siren's song, then delivered nothing but more pain and even worse suffering through crazy, destructive policies that set full societal integration back many years.
The bottom line is that no political party or governmental program is going to help poor Black Americans, or solve the lingering problems that many still face. The Republicans ignore you, but the Democrats keep far too large a percentage of you emeshed in their own special form of slavery.
You owe them nothing.

from a philosophical position. I appreciate the historical facts and statistics used to support your view of blacks and the systems enforced that essentially prohibit more blacks from making progress. Alot of what you are saying is absolutely true. However, its difficult to truly understand the oppositions unless you've walked in the shoes, or in this case, walked in the skin.
First of all, some of the most successful blacks in this country have come from single parent homes that have often times received some form of government assistance. It's not always by choice, but necessity. Yes, there are many today that take advantage of the EIC and the once a year "fat pocket" benefit it offers. Now, keep in mind the EIC maximum extends to roughly $40k a year income. This could not only be welfare recipients with minimum wage jobs per say, but could essentially include school teachers, nurses and incomes from other professions could fall into this category. I understand you are more focused on those that game the system by working just enough to have income to file taxes and fall within the $3k - $4k EIC bracket, but what about those that truly would like to get out of the system and do better. For everything in life, there will always be those that don't care to do better. Unfortunately, there will always be some type of system that will help promote them not to do better.
I do however believe, that some of the problem stems from the mentality derived during times of slavery. The same slave mentality that suppressed many blacks during those years still exist today. Its been passed down from generation to generation. Its the same mentality that not only convinced some slaves there was nothing more in life for them than to remain enslaved on the plantation, but more importantly, to remained enslaved in their minds. The mentality that allowed them to accept the meager lifestyle given to them rather than to excel for better. The same mentality that taught them to invoke violence among themselves rather than join forces and promote success amongst themselves. The problems have nothing to do with any political party. It's simply a cycle that has to be broken.

Couldn't have said it better. I saw this newscast 2 times now and each time I hear her daughter in law's comments I want to scream. If you dont know why you are voting for someone and you dont know what that someone stands for, then why are you voting. "He's a handsome man". Thats lovely, but "A handsome man" isnt going to cut it for running the country. Look at the facts, not the skin color or the pretty face!